I crossed Sagebrush Drive and started downhill toward Remy and Sykes’ place.
Two wasn’t bad, but it meant we couldn’t meet at their place anymore. How many guests did we have at my house? All the rooms in our basement were empty, and the sectional in the family area could be converted into a queen bed. Having people around was going to be weird. I was used to being with just Grampa and Aunt Janelle who came and went.
- 18 -
NEW ROOMMATES
Remy and Sykes’ front door flew open before I reached it. “Welcome to our new home,” Izzy said.
“You and Kim are their houseguests?”
“Oh yeah.” She closed the door behind me. “When your grandfather told us we were getting houseguests, we decided—”
“Rather the slobs we know than ones we don’t know,” Kim cut in as she walked by with a clear tote bag filled with creams, lotions, and hair gels. She disappeared inside the bedroom that had been Remy’s.
“You guys kicked Remy downstairs?” Sykes already had a bedroom downstairs and didn’t need to move.
“Not really. The guys chose downstairs, which is great for the nudist colony wanna-be.”
“I heard that,” Sykes yelled from downstairs. “I eat breakfast in the morning, so I’ll still come upstairs.”
“Don’t care,” Izzy yelled back, grinning. “Just put on some damn clothes before you do or you’ll know firsthand what Kim can do with frigid air. Want to see my room?” she added softly. “Remy transported the furniture in one teleport.”
The perks of being an Earth Guardian was his ability to manipulate solids, including shrinking them to portable sizes. “Your clothes?”
She laughed. “Oh, no, he didn’t touch those. Or my shoes. He’s good, but I wasn’t taking chances.”
Izzy’s bedroom was right by the front entrance, like mine. It used to be a workout room; now it was a replica of Izzy’s old bedroom. Done in palettes of brown, gold and jungle green, and a queen bed with a sheer golden canopy over it, it exuded warmth.
I noticed two clairvoyant crystals on her computer desk. One projected images of a family of five. I recognized Izzy in some of them. In others, she was much younger. The second crystal showed short homemade movies of a young girl about ten, her hair even curlier than Izzy’s. She was a gymnast. Another one showed the same girl dancing. The images changed to show a handsome guy. Something about his expression and the way he moved reminded me of Dante.
Izzy was so private that I had never asked her about her family, but she noticed my interest. “My brother, Dominic, and my baby sister, Aria, short for Arianna,” she said with forced cheerfulness. She picked up the second crystal and smiled. “Dom is studying to be an art historian while Aria… Aria wants to be everything.”
“Your brother is handsome,” I said.
“Sadly, he thinks so too, which makes him insufferable.” Izzy put the crystal down, waved a hand over it, and deactivated the images. Her eyes were overly bright as though she was holding back tears.
“And those are my parents.” She pointed at an image of a lovely couple seated next to each other on a loveseat. I could see her brother Dom in both her mother and father.
“You look like your mom,” I said.
“I know.” She turned abruptly. “Come on, I’ll show you Kim’s new room.”
I’d never entered Remy’s bedroom before, but Kim had definitely transformed it into hers—everything was white and designer, from the dresser, to the vanity chair with a skirt, to the canopied bed, to the throw rug.
“When this mess with the Tribunal is over, Izzy and I will get our own place instead of moving back with my parents,” Kim said.
“Good to know this move is not permanent,” Sykes said from the doorway. “Aren’t you guys done yet? We want more info on the archangels.”
“Out of my room, Sykes,” Kim ordered. “You don’t waltz in without knocking or pinging me first.”
“I knew this was a bad idea from the word go.” Shaking his head, he disappeared downstairs.
Kim and Izzy looked at each other and giggled. Poor Sykes. They were going to make his life hell. We followed him downstairs and settled on the couch. By the time Bran joined us, we were done dissecting everything, down to Gavyn’s use of Kylie as a medium.
“Are you going to tell her what he did?” Izzy asked.
“Yeah. She’s out of town right now.”
“Now can we discuss Keiran and tonight?” Kim interrupted impatiently. “We won’t be able to meet with them.”
“Or any other night until the Cardinals lift the lockdown,” Remy added.
Kim sighed.
“Why not just call him and explain the situation?” Bran asked. “He’ll understand.”
“He doesn’t have a phone,” Kim explained. “His customers use telepathy to make reservations. If we don’t meet with them tonight, they’ll believe we don’t care about them.”
“The Cardinals promised to find a way to help the Specials and the older members of the Brotherhood,” Bran explained.
“But they always take forever to decide on anything,” Kim said and sighed again. “By the time they agree on what to do, how and when to do it, it would be too late.”
“Let’s just sneak out and make the meeting,” Sykes suggested.
“No way,” Izzy protested. “The Cardinals will have our heads on a platter.”
“Just a second, Izzy.” Kim’s gaze didn’t leave Sykes. “How can we sneak out undetected?”
“Do what?” Remy asked, reappearing with drinks on a tray, which he placed on the coffee table.
“Sneak out of the valley,” I said, not believing what they were planning.
Kim cut me a quick look. “From your tone, I take it you’re out.”
“I think we should be careful because Raphael and his men are waiting for us out there,” I retorted. “Even the senior Cardinals decided they won’t use their powers anymore because it could alert the archangels. The only thing stopping Raphael from finding us is the shield over the valley.”
“After the attack on the island, I doubt the shield is that effective,” Izzy added. “They can still sense us.”
“So let’s not use our powers,” Kim insisted. “The Brotherhood will believe we don’t care about them if we don’t make the meeting.”
“Don’t you mean this will screw up things between you and a certain violet-eyed guy?” Sykes mocked.
“That’s not it.” She bit her lower lip, then looked at Bran. “We must contact Keiran and let him know what’s going on.”
My gaze volleyed between Bran and Kim. Before I could protest, Bran nodded. “Okay, I’ll do it.”
“What?” I squealed.
Before Bran could respond, Sykes spoke. “How do you plan to accomplish this amazing feat without us? I know you’re the hero of the moment, but the Psi-dar is on alert mode. You teleport anyway, the remaining security team will be on your tail.”
Bran chuckled. “I’ll tell the Cardinals I have to meet with my brother.”
“I thought you were going to use the other route,” Sykes said in disappointment.
Bran cocked his eyebrow. “What other route?”
“You know, sneak to the canyon’s Wind Caves and teleport from there, therefore outsmarting the Psi- dar.”
There was a collective groan.
“The security shield doesn’t cover the cave?” Kim asked curiously.
